Thursday, December 15, 2011 Capital Weekly Page 1 Capital FromWeekly the Heart of the Nation to the Soul of the People No. 015 Thursday, December 15, 2011 Price: $1.00 Let There Be Lights! Christmas Comes to the Capital City A family poses in front of Belmopan Area Rep. Hon. John Saldivar and Mayor Simeon Lopez turning on the switch the Christmas Tree to light the Christmas Tree that will warm the hearts of Belmopan residents thoughout the season esidents came Council and aspiring coun- Ministry of Sports. A beau- tured artist in Frankie Re- out by the hun- cilors on the UDP ticket for tiful rendition of the na- neau’s Celebration Album. dreds. In fact, municipal elections 2012. tional anthem was sung by The gathering was the unofficialR count was well MC for the evening Radiance Thompson, a lo- lead in prayer by Pastor over a thousand. The occa- was Ismael ‘Miley’ Garcia, cal singer made famous by Scott Stirm of Jubilee Min- sion was the third Christmas National Coordinator in the her participation as a fea- istries. Deputy Mayor Amil- Tree Lighting ceremony, this car Umana did the welcome. one kicking off the Christ- There were speeches by May- mas celebrations for 2011 or Simeon Lopez and Area in the Nation’s Capital. It Representative Hon. John took place last Saturday De- Saldivar who both encour- cember 10, 2011 at the Sir aged residents to participate George Brown Field start- in the activities planned for ing at 6:30 in the evening. the season and work together On hand for the event to ensure a merry and blessed were Belmopan Area Repre- Christmas for all. The thank sentative Hon. John Saldivar, you was done by Councilor Mayor Simeon Lopez, mem- and former Deputy May- bers of the Belmopan City Students of El Shaddai Primary School entertained in song Continued on Page 2 Page 2 Capital Weekly Thursday, December 15, 2011 Let There Be Lights! Editorial Belizean Survival- Top Quality This past weekend I was visited by a friend who had just delivered a truck load of oranges to the factory. He was working for one of the big citrus farmers in the Stann Creek district. The trucker was upset because over 200 of the 800 boxes of oranges delivered were rejected. Truckers get paid by the amount of accepted fruit delivered. Therefore, this trucker was only being paid for some 600 boxes transported. The trucker was upset with his employer, Students of Garden City Primary School doing their thing not the factory. He said he noticed Continued from Page 1 planned and executed in some of the oranges were green. The or Victor Perdomo, under conjunction with the Of- whose portfolio the event fice of Area Representa- big citrus farmer thought he could get was organized, with special tive Hon. John Saldivar, he away with delivering inferior fruits. events coordinator Tricia Pe- and his team along Mayor layo spearheading the effort. Lopez and his team set- At present, the factory is very Entertainment was ting a good example of uni- committed to accepting only the provided by El Shaddai Pri- ty and cooperation for the mary School. There were residents of the Capital City. best quality fruit. Even though some beautiful Christmas songs by The grounds on which farmers are upset, this is the only the Belchoral Society. There the Christmas Tree stands will way Belize can compete in the global were also performances by be the venue for various events Garden City Primary School during the Yuletide Season, citrus market; with the best quality. and Kushlin Ha Government including Children’s parties. A country must learn to adapt to School. Miss Magdalene Gibson performed a ballet the circumstances. Our population dance, and there was a pres- CapitalFrom the Heart Weekly of the Nation is small. Labour is a problem. We entation by the Police Drama Group. The Youth Legacy To the Soul of the People do not have quantity in products. Church Group of Ontario Countries like Mexico and Brazil, Village provided live music. Published By: Roots & Rhythm Ltd. can always out-supply Belize. The event was alcohol free, being a real family oc- 15 Gibnut Street Belmopan Our survival must always be based casion. Free sodas were pro- vided by Bowen and Bowen on the quality of our products and Chairman: Limited, who have always Delroy Cuthkelvin services. We must produce the best supported the event, having oranges, the best sugar, the best chocolate, provided the Christmas Tree Editor: for the two previous years’ Wilbourne Cuthkelvin the best bananas, the best shrimp,... event. This year, the Belmo- When the name Belize is mentioned pan City Council acquired Compositor: in the global economy, it will never be its own Christmas Tree, and William Cuthkelvin prizes given out at the event because of the size of our production. were donated by the coun- Telephone: We can ensure, however, that Belize cilors and staff at City Hall 802-1284 who also did the decora- survives because of one word: QUALITY. tion of the Christmas Tree Email: and other logistical work capitalweekly_bze@ Send comments to [email protected] to make the event possible. yahoo.com The entire event was Thursday, December 15, 2011 Capital Weekly Page 3 Major Works in the Capital Upgrading Infrastructure- Creating Jobs Dean Barrow to improve in- frastructure in the City, while also providing employment. As we all know by now, Prime Minister Bar- row has been determined and unwavering in his com- mitment to create employ- ment everywhere, despite fi- nancial limitations imposed by global economic condi- tions and heavy demands on our local resources as a result of the wasteful spend- ing by the last administra- tion that left us an onerous Constitution Drive with newly installed features to organize the traffic debt burden in the billions. f you move around Belmopan City these days, you will noticeI a flurry of activities taking place simultaneously, all intended to upgrade the Capital City’s infrastruc- ture, improve its aesthet- ics and make life easier and safer for those who live here, work here or visit for busi- ness and other purposes. First of all, there is ma- jor upgrading and repairing of streets, drain restoration, walkway repairs and bushing, all part of a project utilizing the City Council’s own funds as well as special funds com- One of the intersections on Constitution Drive that has become very busy of late mitted by Prime Minister In the Capital City, the Prime Minister’s initiative, as we noted, has provided much needed resources to supple- ment the City Council’s own funds for upgrading and re- pairing of the City’s infra- structure. It has also, at the same time, created employ- ment for over 100 persons, many of them young people, who represent a serious chal- lenge for the entire nation, particularly where crime and violence is concerned. The Prime Minister’s Another busy intersection connecting the Ministry of Works, the Ministry of Lands and the Western Regional Hospital in Belmopan Continued on Page 8 Page 4 Capital Weekly Thursday, December 15, 2011 Pre-school Project Launched in Santiago Juan Layout of San Ignacio Taking part in the ground-breaking: SIF’s Daniel Cano, Hon. Salvador Fernandez and Hon. Erwin Contreras A project for the con- construction of a 2,000 sq feet able to accommodate 50 stu- falls in line with Millennium struction of the Santiago Juan concrete building with zinc dents in the morning and 50 Development Goal No. 2, which Pre-school building was of- roof, reinforced concrete floor, in the afternoon. A ramp aims to achieve Universal Pri- ficially launched Monday De- galvanized aluminum louvered will be built to accommo- mary Education and Target 5 cember 12, 2011 during a windows with burglar bars and date special needs children. which aims to ensure that by ground breaking ceremony solid timber doors. The build- The building and playing 2005, children everywhere will in the Santiago Juan Layout ing will have one class room area will be properly fenced. able to complete a full course of Area of San Ignacio Town. and will include a kitchenette Pre-school education primary schooling up to Stand- The project is being im- and a boys and girls bathroom sets the foundation for the life ard 6. A proper pre-school ed- plemented by the Social In- facility. Landscaping, installa- long process of learning by ucation will enable entry into vestment Fund at an approxi- tion of playground equipment equipping children with the primary school making possi- mate cost of $211,895.00 and a supply of toys and electronic basic literacy and social skills. ble the fulfillment of this goal. financed by the Government of equipment such as a DVD Play- Early childhood education is Santiago Juan Layout is Belize through a loan from the er, television and radio will be crucial for human develop- located in the suburbs to the Caribbean Development Bank. included as part of the project. ment and poverty reduction. west of San Ignacio Town, Cayo The project entails the The pre-school will be The pre-school project Continued on Page 5 Hon. Erwin Contreras, Min of Economic Development Hon. Salvador Fernandez, Area Rep for Cayo North Thursday, December 15, 2011 Capital Weekly Page 5 Pre-school Project Launched in Santiago Juan Layout of San Ignacio John August, Mayor of San Ignacio Daniel Cano, Social Investment Fund the full support of the Minis- Catholic school on the Bul- Consumer Protection. Other Continued from Page 4 try of Education and the Gov- let Tree Road that is near to speakers included Hon.